2007 Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear - Round 2

1) Move-in will start for Star Mazda teams on Wednesday, 18 April at approximately 2:00 p.m. and conclude at noon on Thursday, 19 April when the track walls will be completed.

2)  It will not be possible to remove rigs from the paddock until Sunday, 22 April, after the races are concluded.  The promoter has asked us to encourage each team to leave a car on display in the paddock until noon on Sunday, for spectator interest.  There is no reason teams cannot breakdown and load at their discretion.

3)  The Series rig will remain open in the paddock for parts, until noon on Sunday.

Dane Cameron takes the victory at Reliant Park

HOUSTON, TEXAS – Dane Cameron of Sonoma, Calif., won Round Two of the 2007 Star Mazda Championship, winning the Grand Prix of Houston Formula Mazda race from the pole for JDC Motorsports Saturday at Reliant Park's 1.69 mile street course.

Cameron, driving the No. 19 for Ocean Tomo 300 and www.mockett.com, also started from the pole at the season's opening race at Sebring in March.

“I just want to thank JDC Motorsports and my team for giving me such a great car,” Cameron said.

Maxwell Paper Racing's Daniel Di Leo finished second, followed by JDC Motorsports driver Jonathan Goring.

“It feels good to finish on the podium in my second race,” said Goring, who drives the No. 14 Skip Barber Racing machine.
The 30-lap race finished under caution, when Eric Freiberg got into the wall between Turns 7 and 8.

Ron White crossed the line fourth, working his way through the field after having his qualifying times thrown out.
The Star Mazda Championship will be in action next at Virginia International Raceway on April 27th.

Dane Cameron captures pole at Reliant Park

HOUSTON, TEXAS – Dane Cameron won his second pole of the season for JDC Motorsports, sponsored by Ocean Tomo 300 and www.mockett.com for this afternoon's Star Mazda race at Houston's Reliant Park with a qualyfing speed of 89.276.

“I was in the second group and some of the fog had burned off from this morning which is definitely preferable,” Cameron said. “We had to get a lap in real quick between red flags, and we were able to put together a lap real quick.”

Maxwell Paper Racing's Marco Di Leo qualified second with a time of 89.041, followed by John Walko Racing's John Zartarian and Russell Walker, and Andersen Racing's Jonathan Goring.

Both qualifying groups had two red flags, the first flying when Michael Duncalfe and Dan Tomlin, Jr. had contact in Turn 9.
“He got inside me and I didn't see him and we got together,” said Tomlin, sponsored by Team Tomlin.”It wasn't his fault, everything's okay.”

Devin Cunningham had a meeting with the wall in Turn 6, thanks to a broken suspension, bringing a red flag for the course and a checkered flag for the first qualifying group.

Adam Pecorari brought the first red flag for the second group when he made contact with the wall in Turn 4. “There were too many red flags,” said Jamie Morrow, of Velocity Motorsports, who was leading at the time. “My time was getting quicker and quicker and quicker and then we had the red flag and I only got six real laps. I think if I'd had more laps, I would have been able to improve.”

The track went green with eight minutes to go, when Charles Anti brought a red and checkered with his wall contact.
The Star Mazda Championship will take the green flag for the 2007 Grand Prix of Houston at 3:20 p.m.Central time.

Dane Cameron leads opening practice at Reliant Park

HOUSTON, TEXAS – Dane Cameron posted the fastest lap once again Friday morning at Reliant Park in Houston, surviving a very early green flag and two red flag periods on a slippery track, to put his JDC Motorsports Mazda at the top of the speed charts.

“We were the very, very, very first session today,” Cameron said. “The track was pretty dirty, we cleaned the track up, basically. We ended up fastest, so I'm pretty satisfied.”

Cameron ran a street course last year with F2000 in Toronto, and has run a few in his karting career.

“The track is really slippery,” Cameron said. “Basically, we are in the parking lot of Reliant Stadium, and a couple of connecting streets, They're city streets, they're really dirty, really grimy”.

Ron White posted the second fastest time in his Team G.FRO machine, despite being penalized four times for short-cutting the chicane. One of those penalties was rescinded by race control, due to traffic forcing White to commit the apparent infraction.
James Davison was third, followed by Jonathan Goring and Adam Pecorari.

Devin Cunningham, who came in ninth, was enthusiastic about his first run, but echoed Cameron's sentiments about the grip on track.

“It felt good,” Cunningham said of his first run. “It's my second time driving that car, the second time this season. It's really nice to be in the car.”

This is Cunningham's first time running a street car and a street course, and he said he felt he adjusted to it appropriately and learned a few things that will help him improve for the second session.

“The track is really slick, it took a little time to get used to it,” Cunningham said.”But, so far, so good.”

The Star Mazda drivers will take the track again Friday afternoon at 3:25 p.m. local timefor another practice session.